Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard shared one disastrous year together on the Los Angeles Lakers.  Howard later departed for the Houston Rockets and when the two met up again on opposing teams, insults and tussles ensued.  But now as Bryant gears up for retirement, the two admit the animosity between them is no more.

Before and after the Lakers’ 126-97 loss to the Houston Rockets on Saturday at Toyota Center, Bryant and Howard briefly exchanged hugs.

“It’s not personal,” Bryant said. “You have to let that stuff go.”

“We’ll always be fine. My responsibility when Dwight and I played together was to get him to play his best basketball,” Bryant said. “That involves sometimes pushing buttons when guys don’t necessarily appreciate it at the time. As a leader, that’s your job and that’s your responsibility. It’s nothing personal. You just try to get the best out of him even if they don’t find the humor in that at the time.”

“He is one of the greatest players to ever play the game. He is just getting recognized for his accomplishments on the floor. All of us want to have that kind of reception when we’re about to finish our careers,” Howard said. “It makes you feel good knowing that the hard work you put in, that everybody around the world is fascinated and that they love it.”

“Me seeing him in the hallway and joking around with him is natural to me as breathing,” Bryant said. “But on the basketball court, it’s my responsibility to get us to a championship level come hell or high water.”

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source: LA Daily News